1,S(; MEKKILIj. 



lircnkin^f nut all oxer llicir Ixtdics. and llic faci'S of some in(li\ iiliials 

 s\vclliii<i: so that tlicv could sec only willi dillicidty. On Aj)ril .S tlujy 

 siiccoodcd only in cnvcrinij 2h miles Imf they wci-c Fortunate in sccurinj;" 

 the services of a Man^yan as a li'uide. On the rollo\vin,ii' day. lindin^'' 

 further ])ro<iress u]) the Alag iin[)ossil)le. they retrat-ed their ste[)s a short 

 distance. Icaviuii: the canon of the Alag and following the hed of a small 

 rixcr llowing from the west," making cam]) in the hed of this stream 

 at an altitude of l.oOO feet. It rained at intervals during the day and 

 all the night and the ])arty gave up hope of ascending JIalcon. On 

 A])ril 10 and 11 they crossed the dixide at an altitude of 3,230 feet, 

 striking the headwaters (d' the Haghaujan Kiver flowing westward, in 

 these two days sutfering much from the attacks of leeches and from the 

 constant rain. On the night of April 12 a camj) was made in the narrow 

 canon of the IJaghaujan hut, at S ]). m.. l)ecause of the heavy rain and the 

 sudden rise in the river, the water coming up ahout 5 feet in one-half 

 hour, the i)arty were ohliged to desert their tents in the darkness and take 

 shelter on a ledge ahove. The I'ain continued until 10 p. m. when the 

 river snhsided as fast as it had risen. On the following day they went 

 down the j-iver for a distance of I4 miles. ])eing ol)liged to make use of 

 ropes for scaling the cliifs. This method of |)rocediire continued on 

 the morning of the 14th, hut later in the day they came out into a more 

 open country and left the river hed. As much of their food had hecome 

 wet owing to the prolonged rains, the (piestion of rations hecame a very 

 serious one and caused the members of the party considerable anxiety. 

 However, after the 14th, no grave difficulties were encountered, the party 

 continued on down the Bagbaujan and reached the mouth of the river on 

 April 19, having been seventeen days in crossing Mindoro. 



In June, 1906, Lieut. T. H. J<'iiiiin(/s, Seventh United States Cavalry, 

 accompanied by Mr. M. L. Mcrn'lt of the Philip])ine Forestry Bureau, 

 made an attempt to ascend llalcon. hut little information regarding their 

 tri|i and ex))eriences is available other than Mr. Meri'itt's rej)ort, who 

 being oi'dereil to I'eaeli Manila on the last of .lune was obliged to return 

 to ('ala|)an befoi-e the highest part »d' the mountain was reacheil. The 

 party left Calapan on th<' morning of dune 1)5, going overland by a trail 

 leading iidand, reached the Catuyi'an liixci'. the south \'oy\< of the 1-iaco, 

 on the morning of the succeeding day and pi'oeeeded up this for some 

 distance, and then followed a stream known as the Dulangnn Wivci' which 

 flows from the llalcon h'ange. Hero most of their cari'iers deserted 

 them, and tlie\' wei-e delayed in securing more. Coid inning up tji<' 

 Dulangan Ifiver on the Kith, they left the lied of the stream on the 

 following <la\ and took one of the ridges, which was followed on the 

 Istli :ind Hull until tlie\ arrivcil at the place where Whitehead had estab- 

 lished his caniii in I.s'.i-"i. I'p to this point the ti'ail was fair. On June 



" .\|i|):n(ii1 ly the KiiHoii Kixcr. (Set- iiiai>.) 



